Tensioning device for yarn packaging machinery

ABSTRACT

In a yarn packaging machine tension discs between which the yarn travels on its way to be wound to form a yarn package, one at least of the discs being supported for movement toward the other to enable varying the pressure which may be applied to the running yarn, thereby to increase or decrease the frictional resistance to movement between the discs, a lever arm connected to the movable disc adapted to support an adjustable weight by means of which the pressure of the one disc against the other may be adjusted and a second lever arm connected thereto, said second lever arm having a part situated in the path of the running yarn operable by a lateral displacement of the running yarn to increase or decrease the pressure applied by the weight.

United States Patent 151 3,695,548 Abbott 1 51 Oct. 3, 1972 TENSIONINGDEVICE FOR YARN 3,206,138 9/1965 Lindsey, ..242/l50 PACKAGING MACHINERYPrima Examiner-Stanlc N. Gilr th 7 1 i Y ea 2] mentor I L Abbott w N HAtt0rney-R0berts, Cushman & Grover [73] Assignee: Abbott Machine Co.,Inc., Wilton,

[57] ABSTRACT [22] Filed: 1970 In a yarn packaging machine tension discsbetween [21] Appl. No.: 1,423 which the yarn travels on its way to bewound to form a yarn package, one at least of the discs being supportedfor movement toward the other to enable vary- (g1 ing the pressure whichmay be applied to running 58] Fie'ld 47 149 45 yarn, thereby to increaseor decrease the frictional resistance to movement between the discs, alever arm connected to the movable disc adapted to support an [56]References Cited adjustable weight by means of which the pressure ofUNITED STATES PATENTS the one disc against the other may be adjusted anda secondlever arm connected thereto, said second lever 1,956,945 5/1934Easton ..242/ 150 arm having a pan Situated in the path f the running1,965,363 7/ 1934 Abbott ..242/ l 50 yam operable by a lateraldisplacement of the running seller yarn to increase or decrease thepressure applied by OSSen th i ht 2,965,332 12/1960 Perry .......242/15Og 3,146,969 9/1964 Lindsey ..242/ 150 2 Claims, 4 Drawing FiguresTENSIONING DEVICE FOR YARN PACKAGING MACHINERY BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION Tension discs for applying frictional resistance to a runningyarn as it is drawn from one package and wound to form another packageis old in the art as illustrated, for example, in US. Pat. Nos.1,994,455, 2,135,485 and 2,177,680, tension being applied by means ofweights and/or springs operating on one or both of the discs. Thetension applied in this manner may be increased or decreased byadjustment of the weights or the spring tension; however, the appliedtension bears no relation to the position of the travelling yarn so thatan increase or decrease in the tension of the yarn preceding orfollowing the tensioning device may result in yarn breakage and/or aloosely wound package. It is accordingly the principal purpose of thisinvention to relate the tension applied by the tension discs to thecondition of the travelling yarn throughout the process of winding torelieve the tension applied by the discs when the tension in the yarnbecomes too great and to increase it when it becomes too slack.

SUMMARY As herein illustrated the invention resides in the combinationwith tension means through which yarn travels in a winding operation asit is unwound from one package and wound onto another of means operablyconnected to the tension means for applying a predetermined frictionalresistance to movement of the yarn through it and of means operablyconnected to the tension means for rendering the tension means more orless effective, the latter means having a part situated adjacent theyarn operable by engagement of the yarn therewith as it changes itscourse to effect operation of the tension means. For example, when ayarn is running between tension discs and being wound onto a cone by atraversing device means may be disposed in the path of the fanning yarnso as to increase the tension applied by the tension discs as the yarnapproaches the smaller end of the cone to take up the slack and hence tomaintain uniform tension in the yarn as it is wound onto the cone.Alternatively when a yarn is running off of a yarn mass to tensioningdiscs and a balloon is formed which may add to the tension in therunning yarn applied by the tensioning disc which might cause breakage,means may be disposed in the sphere of the balloons forma tion operableby an increase in the size of the balloon beyond a predetermined size torelieve the pressure between the tensioning discs. '1

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference tothe accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. I is an elevation showing the device employed in conjunction withthe farming yarn as it travels through tensioning discs of a windingmachine and is wound to form a conical package by means of a traversingcylinder;

FIG. 2 is an elevation showing the device employed in conjunction withthe ballooning yarn of yarn as it is drawn from a yarn mass throughtensioning discs of a winding machine to form a package;

FIG. 3 is an elevation corresponding to FIG. 1, showing the deviceemployed in conjunction with the alternative form of tension applyingmeans; and

FIG. 4 is an elevation taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

In its broadest aspect the invention concerns means for controlling thetension in a running yarn by applying pressure thereto at an angletending to jam or stall the yarn and employing in combination therewithlimit control means. Specifically, the invention comprehends thecombination with tension discs between which the yarn is moved as it isunwound from one package and wound to form another, of means forapplying frictional pressure to the running yarn between the discs nearthe stalling pressure and of employing changes in physical position ofthe yarn due to changes in tension in the yarn to increase or decreasethe frictional pressure applied to the yarn by the tension discs.

One application of the aforesaid means is illustrated in FIG. 1, whereinyarn y is being wound onto a cone 10 by a traversing cylinder 12containing ahelical groove 14 which carries the yarn longitudinally fromend to end of the cone as it is wound thereon. In accordance withconventional practice the yarn y is drawn over the end of a package msupported on a spindle l6 successively through spaced guides 'l8-l8, atensioning device 20, spaced guides 22-22 and spaced guides 2424 all ofwhich are located upon and supported by an apron 26 constituting part ofthe frame of the machine, for example, a structure such as shown in US.Pat. Nos. 2,135,485 and 2,177,680.

As indicated in FIG. 1 the yarn; y travels along substantially astraight line from the package m upwardly through the spaced guides18-18, through the tensioning device 20, and the spaced guide 22-22.Between the spaced guide 22-22 and the spaced guide 2424 the yarncommences to have a small amount of lateral movement fan due to thetraversing action vof the traversing cylinder 12 and beyond the spacedguides 2424 the lateral movement increases substantially through arelatively wide angle A. The angle A through which the yarn travels fromside to side is commonly referred to as the fan of the yarn.

The tensioning device 20 through which the yarn travels comprisesconfronting discs 28 and 30 of conventional design supported however inaccordance with this invention so as to enable applying a pressure, tothe yarn travelling between them, corresponding substantially to jammingpressure and for controlling the application of this pressure inresponse to the lateral disposition of the yarn in the fan as-it moveslinearly from the guides 2424 to the traversing cylinder 12. Asillustrated the discs 28 and 30 are cup shaped and have circularconfronting surfaces 28a and 30a held in opposed relation at oppositesides of the yarn for frictional engagement therewith. The disc 28 issupported in position by a spring ring 32 at one end of the spindle 34which in turn is supported for movement longitudinally in a directionperpendicular to the surface 28a in transversely spaced blocks 36-46projecting forwardly from a bracket plate 38 fastened to the apron 26.The opposite end of the spindle 34 is engaged by an arm 40 connected atits lower end to a shaft 42 rotatably mounted in a bearing 44 on theapron 26. The shaft 42 extends rearwardly through the apron and has onits rearwardly extending end a radially mounted arm 46 on which there isslideably mounted a weight 48 adjustably fastened thereto by a set screw50.

Movement of the disc 28 to the left is limited, by a collar 74 pinned tothe spindle 34, to a position such that its surface 28a coincides withthe normal course of travel of the yarn. Displacement of the disc 28toward the right is opposed by the position of the weight 48 on the arm46, the full effect of which becomes effective in response to pressureof the disc 30 against the yarn which tends to exceed the jammingpressure that is pressure which would tend to stop the running yarn.

The disc 30 has at its inner side a socket 52 in which there isrotatably mounted a ball 54 provided at one end of an arm 56. The arm 56slopes upwardly from the center of the disc 30 and is secured at itsopposite end to a shaft 58 which is rotatably supported in a bearing 60on the apron 26. The shaft 58 extends through the apron and has on itsrearwardly extending portion a radially mounted arm 62 on which isslideably mounted a weight 64 adjustably fastened thereto by a set screw66.

The rearwardly extending portion of the shaft 58 also has fixed on it ablock 68 from which extends a rod 70. The rod 70 extends upwardly behindthe apron and at its upper end has a portion 72 which extends forwardlyover the upper edge of the apron close to the upper spaced guides 2424and as illustrated closer to the left hand one of the guides 24 than tothe right hand one in a position to be engaged by the yarn y as thelatter moves to the left and to be disengaged thereby as the yarn movestoward the right.

In accordance with the invention the arm 56 by means of which thepressure is applied to the disc 30 is disposed at an angle with respectto the axis of the shaft 34 such that the pressure of the disc 30 isapplied at an angle whose coefficient of friction is somewhat greaterthan the coefficient of friction between the yarn and the discs.Employing an angle x in the neighborhood of 17' to 22 in conjunctionwith the torque applied by the running yarn by way of the disc 30 to thearm there is a great multiplication of force for very little movement ofthe arm 56. Hence, by mounting the arm 70 with its forwardly projectingend 72 between the guides 2424 so that the lateral movement of therunning yarn in the fan exerts pressure on the disc 30, whichcompensates for the decrease in torque which results from slackdeveloping in the yarn as it approaches the left hand side of itslateral movement that is at the tip of the cone where the rate of takeupis less, pressure is applied to the disc 30 to increase the tension soas to take up the slack. If the tension applied by the arm 70 tends tocause jamming the disc 28 will yield thus acting as a limit to theamount of pressure which may be applied and hence the amount of tension.As the yarn moves to the right it leaves the arm 70 and hence thecompensating tension is removed and the full effect of the tension discsrestored.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 the tension discs acted upon by the yarnaugment rather than release the pressure on the yarn travelling betweenthem. The normal tendency of the yarn to jam is counteracted by the useof the opposite tension disc 28 which limits the pressure which may beapplied. By varying the angle of the arm 56 the tension can be modifiedup to the limit imposed by the disc 28.

The device may also be used to relieve rather than augment the tension,for example, as illustrated in FIG. 2, wherein the yarn y is being drawnover the end of a package ma through tension discs 28a, 30a and woundonto a core a by a traversing cylinder 12a to form a package and whereinthe yarn travelling between the package ma and the tension discs 28a,30a forms a balloon b which add tension to the yarn and which inaddition to the tension applied by the tension discs may cause breakage,the physical position of the yarn in the baloon may be employed as wasthe physical position of the yarn in the fan to modify the tensionapplied by the tension discs in this case to decrease the pressurebetween the discs and hence compensate for the tension applied by theballooning. To this end the arm a is so positioned that the forwardlyprojecting end 720 is supported at the right side of the yarn so thatthe lateral displacement of the yarn as the size of the balloonincreases applies a turning moment by way of the arm 72a to the shaft58a in opposition to the weight 640' to move the disc 30a away from thedisc 28a and thereby to relieve the pressure of the discs upon the yarnand hence the tension in the yarn. A decrease in the size of the balloonpermits the end 72a to move toward the left to re-establish the pressurebetween the discs and therefore restore the pressure between the discsapplied by the weight 64a.

Employing tension discs for applying tension to a running yarn up to butnot quite stalling pressure and employing the physical position of theyarn resulting from changes in tension to effect a change in the tensionapplied by the tension discs, is further illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 inconjunction with an alternative form of tensing means wherein yarn y isbeing wound onto a cone by a traversing cylinder 82 containing a helicalgroove 84. The yarn y is drawn from a package mb supported on a spindle86 through successively spaced guides 88-88, tensioning means 90 andspaced guides 92-92 mounted on an apron 94 forming part of the machineframe.

The tensioning means 90 comprises discs 96 and 98 and differs from thatshown in FIG. 1 in that the pressure is applied indirectly. Asillustrated the tension disc 96 is supported by a spring ring 100 at oneend of a spindle 102 rotatably supported in transversely spaced blocksl04-l04 projecting forwardly from the apron 94. The opposite end of thespindle 102 has a forwardly projecting arm 106 which is threaded and hasmounted on it a weight 108 which applies a torque to the spindle 102tending to rotate it about its longitudinal axis. A block 110 is mountedon the spindle 102 between the blocks 104-104 in a fixed position bymeans of a clamp screw 112 and has at its lower side a pin 114 on whichis rotatably mounted a roller 116. A bracket 1 18 is fastened to theapron 94 between the blocks 104- 104 by a screw bolt and has extendingforwardly therefrom a cam plate 122 provided with a flat cam surface 124parallel to the axis of the roller 116 and inclined with respect to theaxis of the spindle 102, sloping from left to right as illustrated in FIG. 4. As thus constructed the turning moment applied to the spindle 102by the weight 108 forces the roller 1 16 against the flat cam surface124 which in turn applies a force perpendicular to the disc 96 to pressit against the disc 98. Thus the force applied to the disc 96 is appliedindirectly through the cam surface 124 and may be varied by changing theinclination of the cam surface and the position of the weight on the arm106.

The tension disc 98 contains at its center a socket 126 for rotatablyreceiving a ball 128 at one end of a spindle 130 which is mounted inblocks 132-l32 extending forwardly from the apron and is fixed againstlateral displacement in a direction away from the course of the yarn bya collar 134 fastened to the spindle 130 by a set screw 136.

By adjusting the inclination of the cam surface 124 and/or the weight108 as related above the disc 96 may be pressed against the disc 98 toapply substantially stalling tension to the yarn. As in the previouslydescribed tensioning device the torque applied by the weight 108augmented by the torque applied by the running yarn applies pressurewhich approaches jamming pressure. As the yarn moves toward the left,however, the slower takeup develops slack and to compensate for thedecrease in the tension applied by the discs an arm 138 is mounted onthe block 110 having a lateral projection 140 which extends parallel tothe axis of the spindle 102 behind the course of the yarn. As thefanning yarn moves to the left approaching the tip slack develops whichallows the arm 140 to move forwardly by the weight 108 therebyincreasing the cam action which in turn applies increased pressure tothe disc 96 to increase the frictional pressure of the discs on theyarn. As the yarn travels toward the right, that is, toward the base ofthe cone the tension in the yarn increases thereby rocking the armrearwardly in opposition to the weight which in turn lessens the camaction and releases the pressure. Should pressure exceeding stallingpressure be applied, the disc 96 will yield.

[claim:

1. In a yarn-processing machine, means for applying tension to a runningyarn comprising confronting tension discs and means supporting saidtension discs at opposite sides of the path of the running yarn forfrictional engagement with the yarn, the means for supporting the discscomprising a first support for one of the discs movable rectilinearly ina direction perpendicular to said one disc, means operating on saidfirst support to urge said one disc towards the yarn path, meansco-operable with said first support limiting movement of said one disctowards the yarn path to the path of the yarn, and a second support forthe other disc movable angularly about an axis located radially distantfrom the center of said other disc and in spaced parallel relation tothe face thereof, said second support being movable about said axis tomove said other disc toward said one disc, means operating on saidsecond support in a direction to hold said other disc against said onedisc at a predetermined pressure below the pressure required to effectdisplacement of said one disc, and a lever arm fixed to said secondsupport, said lever having anend situated in the path of the runningyarn beyond the discs in the direction of running operable by pressureof the yarn to change to the frictional force applied by said discs tothe yarn, said one disc limiting the force that may be applied by theother disc to the yarn.

2. In a yarn-processing machine, means for applying tension to a runningyarn comprising confronting discs, and means supporting theconfrontingdiscs, comprising first means supporting one of the discs with itssurface in a predetermined position at one side of the running yarn,second means supporting the other disc for movement relative to the onedisc, and means for applyin a force to one of the supports to press theassociate confron s, said first disc against the disc 1 means comprisinga spindle supported in bearings for rectilinear movement perpendicularto the face of the one disc, to one end of which the associated disc isfixed, and the second means comprising an arm pivotally supported at oneend in a bearing for angular movement about an axis spaced radially andaxially from the center of the associated disc, and to the other end ofwhich is pivotally connected the associated disc, and a lever fixed atone end to the pivoted end of the arm with the other end adjacent thecourse of the running yarn beyond the tension discs, said lever beingdisposed at an angle to said arm and being operable by pressure of therunning yarn to effect movement of the arm in a direction to increasethe frictional resistance between the discs and the yarn.

1. In a yarn-processing machine, means for applying tension to a runningyarn comprising confronting tension discs and means supporting saidtension discs at opposite sides of the path of the running yarn forfrictional engagement with the yarn, the means for supporting the discscomprising a first support for one of the discs movable rectilinearly ina direction perpendicular to said one disc, means operating on saidfirst support to urge said one disc towards the yarn path, meansco-operable with said first support limiting movement of said one disctowards the yarn path to the path of the yarn, and a second support forthe other disc movable angularly about an axis located radially distantfrom the center of said other disc and in spaced parallel relation tothe face thereof, said second support being movable about said axis tomove said other disc toward said one disc, means operating on saidsecond support in a direction to hold said other disc against said onedisc at a predetermined pressure below the pressure required to effectdisplacement of said one disc, and a lever arm fixed to said secondsupport, said lever having an end situated in the path of the runningyarn beyond the discs in the direction of running operable by pressureof the yarn to change to the frictional force applied by said discs tothe yarn, said one disc limiting the force that may be applied by theother disc to the yarn.
 2. In a yarn-processing machine, means forapplying tension to a running yarn comprising confronting discs, andmeans supporting the confronting discs, comprising first meanssupporting one of the discs with its surface in a predetermined positionat one side of the running yarn, second means supporting the other discfor movement relative to the one disc, and means for applying a force toone of the supports to press the associated disc against the disc itconfronts, said first means comprising a spindle supported in bearingsfor rectilinear movement perpendicular to the face of the one disc, toone end of which the associated disc is fixed, and the second meanscomprising an arm pivotally supported at one end in a bearing forangular movement about an axis spaced radially and axially from thecenter of the associated disc, and to the other end of which ispivotally connected the associated disc, and a lever fixed at one end tothe pivoted end of the arm with the other end adjacent the course of therunning yarn beyond the tension discs, said lever being disposed at anangle to said arm and being operable by pressure of the running yarn toeffect movement of the arm in a direction to increase the frictionalresistance between the discs and the yarn.